Salada tea is a Canadian brand of

tea Tea is an aromatic beverage prepared by pouring hot or boiling water over cured or fresh leaves of '' Camellia sinensis'', an evergreen shrub native to East Asia which probably originated in the borderlands of south-western China and nor ...

currently sold in Canada by

Lipton Teas and Infusions LIPTON Teas and Infusions B.V. is a Dutch multinational company headquartered in Amsterdam, that produces tea and other herbal drinks. Founded as a spin-off from Unilever in 2021, it is the largest tea company in the world, owning brands, ...

and in the United States by Salada Foods, a division of Redco Foods, Inc.

History

The Salada tea business was founded in

Toronto Toronto ( , locally pronounced or ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, most populous city in Canada. It is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ontario. With a p ...

in 1892 by

Montreal Montreal is the List of towns in Quebec, largest city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Quebec, the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-largest in Canada, and the List of North American cit ...

-born businessman

Peter Charles Larkin Peter Charles Larkin, (May 14, 1855 – February 3, 1930) was a Canadian businessman, diplomat and political patron. Business career Larkin, a world traveller who specialized in finding foodstuffs for import, was best known for founding the ...

. His main innovation was to replace tea sold loose from tea chests with a product packaged in

foil Foil may refer to: Materials * Foil (metal), a quite thin sheet of metal, usually manufactured with a rolling mill machine * Metal leaf, a very thin sheet of decorative metal * Aluminium foil, a type of wrapping for food * Tin foil, metal foil ma ...

. This helped establish a uniform flavor for Salada and the promise of consistent freshness to its drinkers. It became one of the leading teas in Canada and the

northeastern United States The Northeastern United States (also referred to as the Northeast, the East Coast, or the American Northeast) is List of regions of the United States, census regions United States Census Bureau. Located on the East Coast of the United States, ...

By 1917, Salada tea was so popular in the United States that Larkin's company (the Salada Tea Company Limited) was able to establish a U.S. headquarters, blending and packaging plant at 330 Stuart Street in

Boston, Massachusetts Boston is the capital and most populous city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Massachusetts in the United States. The city serves as the cultural and Financial centre, financial center of New England, a region of the Northeas ...

. Designed by architects Densmore and LeClear, the building featured large bronze doors by

Henry Wilson Henry Wilson (born Jeremiah Jones Colbath; February 16, 1812 – November 22, 1875) was the 18th vice president of the United States, serving from 1873 until his death in 1875, and a United States Senate, senator from Massachusetts from 1855 to ...

inscribed with images of the history of the

Ceylon tea Ceylon tea is both the brand of tea which is produced in Sri Lanka and a historic term describing tea from that land. Ceylon tea has been described as not only a geographical descriptor but also a pillar of Culture of Sri Lanka, Sri Lankan cultur ...

trade, as well as Larkin's own contributions to a commitment to quality in the field. Although the building has changed hands several times, the doors are still there. By the 1950s, Salada had established plants across North America. In 1957, the company was acquired by Shirriff-Horsey. From 1969 to 1988, it was owned in Canada by Kellogg Canada. In 1988, Salada was acquired by Redco Foods, Inc., a company formed to produce

Red Rose Tea Red Rose Tea is a beverage company established by Theodore Harding Estabrooks in 1890 in Saint John, New Brunswick, Canada. Estabrooks began his career in trade imports and exports, and soon moved specifically to the tea trade. Realizing the i ...

in the U.S. under license from

Unilever Unilever PLC () is a British multinational consumer packaged goods company headquartered in London, England. It was founded on 2 September 1929 following the merger of Dutch margarine producer Margarine Unie with British soap maker Lever B ...

. Not long thereafter, Redco Foods sold Salada (Canada) to Unilever, so that each company produced both brands in their respective country. Since 1995, Redco Foods has been owned by Teekanne of Germany. Since 2018, Salada-branded tea in the U.S. has been produced under license by Harris Tea Company. The Salada brand in the U.S. is still owned by Redco Foods, Since 2022, Salada tea in Canada is a brand of

, following Unilever divesting most of its tea business to

CVC Capital Partners CVC Capital Partners plc is a Jersey-based private equity and investment advisory firm with approximately €186 billion of assets under management and approximately €157 billion in secured commitments since inception across American, European, ...

and with it the ownership of Salada brand in Canada.

References

External links

Salada website (U.S.)Salada website (Canada)
{{Ekaterra Lipton Teas and Infusions Former Unilever brands Tea brands Food and drink companies established in 1892 Companies based in Toronto Companies based in Boston Food and drink companies based in New York (state) 1892 establishments in Ontario CVC Capital Partners companies Canadian companies established in 1892